Northwest People/Places.

Frog Weather?

It Seemed Like The Perfect Time For This Hunt

Damp weather and soggy trails didn't stop some determined visitors from their search recently for things that croak in the night at the Volo Bog State Natural Area in Ingleside.

"I had so many people call to ask if we were canceling if it were raining, but what do frogs like?" asked Stacy Miller, the site interpretive program coordinator at the Volo Bog. "Water," she said.

The 20-plus adults and children who did attend this year's bog frog walk hoped to learn about, as well as maybe even hear, some of the varieties of frogs and toad species that inhabit the Illinois Department of Conservation site.

"Last year we saw some toads," said Jim Hogan, 61, of Waukegan. "Maybe we'll see some frogs this time."

Charles Seminara, 8, of Ingleside said, "I like the sounds of their croaks and how they can leap."

Although frogs were making their mating calls this time of year, Miller, 32, of Wonder Lake, said the cooler weather probably would amount to nothing more than a quiet evening walk. "It's cool at night, so we might not hear any frogs," she cautioned.

Splitting into two groups, Miller and co-leader Debbie Kramer of Round Lake cautioned the visitors to listen quietly. The hikers heard traffic sounds, whirs of red-winged blackbirds and a screech or two from other birds. "I just heard a dog," Charles said. "The frogs that sound like dogs."

A couple of people thought they heard distant bullfrog croaks. Members of both groups heard the trills of a western chorus frog. Other native species were silent, which didn't surprise Tad Mazik, 9, of Mt. Prospect.

"I didn't expect to find any frogs," he said. "It's pretty cold."

The silence of the frogs wasn't too much of a disappointment, however. "We'd never been here before and always drove past it," said Mike Volpa of Cary.

"It's a unique place," added Jo Mazik of Mt. Prospect. "Bogs used to be all over Illinois, and now it's just here. Hopefully, the kids get an appreciation for nature."

And this excursion did prove that on a cool, wet evening, you may not find frogs in the wild, but you have a good chance of finding humans.